I finally have enough masters sessions under my Speedo to get a feel for fitness. I will still improve my stamina between now and September 21, but I am very happy with where I am right now.
Today's main set included 6x200y, on 3:30 for my lane. This was after the kicking sets and pulling sets. I was able to comfortably finish that swim set, touching in 3:00 to 3:05 each 200. That is a great pace for me, about as quick as I've ever done a set like that. If I can hold steady 1:30 per 100y in the pool on a little rest, I should be able to hold 1:30 with a wetsuit on.
At least, I have in the past. But that wasn't at altitude and I was 8 years younger.
But, I'm going into the swim pretty confident. I'll hit the masters swims 2x per week each of the next three weeks. I will also have a chance to swim at Lake Tahoe this weekend. Planning on 3x 15 minutes open water, with wetsuit. Should give me a good feel for the appropriate effort level at altitude.
Right now, I'm mostly worried about my bike fitness. My goal of riding at 165 to 170 watts is, I think, overly optimistic at this point. I'll probably dial my expectations back to 155w. Ride all the way to the Rte. 267 climb under 150w, and then stay under 170w on the long climb. Finish at steady 150-155. I'll get a feel for what kind of bike split that will produce this weekend by riding one lap of the course.
I don't normally think riding a course ahead of time is very worthwhile. I wouldn't go much out of my way to do it. But I have a chance to meet some friends up there this weekend, so I'm going to do it.
A bike ride is a bike ride. The course doesn't matter. You're going to sit on a power number all day anyway (+/- 5%). Who cares if the road goes up or down or left or right? I'm doing it simply out of curiosity -- a game I play where I try to predict my finishing time.
Tuesday, August 26, 2014
Friday, August 22, 2014
Swim Update
I've done four masters sessions since my last swim update. It always amazes me how fast basic swim fitness can come around. I've already moved over one lane (to the 2800-2900y lane) and can keep up with everyone. Yesterday's session felt strong. I'm going again tomorrow morning, then a long ride.
Another advantage to masters is that you can get some actual instruction. The instructor gave me some very good tips on my arm positions and how to use a two-beat kick better. I immediately felt faster and smoother in the water.
At this rate, maybe I can be optimistic about swimming around 35 minutes at altitude. I'm not going to push it certainly...I will go out very slow and easy and see how it feels. But I should be able to be under 40 minutes without hardly trying.
Another advantage to masters is that you can get some actual instruction. The instructor gave me some very good tips on my arm positions and how to use a two-beat kick better. I immediately felt faster and smoother in the water.
At this rate, maybe I can be optimistic about swimming around 35 minutes at altitude. I'm not going to push it certainly...I will go out very slow and easy and see how it feels. But I should be able to be under 40 minutes without hardly trying.
Tuesday, August 19, 2014
Thoughts on Weight
Over on the tri forums, questions about weight come up a lot. First, what is the "right" weight?
I'll paraphrase Dan Empfield:
When your family and friends start asking if you've lost weight, you're not even getting started.
When they ask if you've been sick, you're within maybe 10 pounds.
If they start whispering to your spouse/partner and asking if you have AIDS or cancer, you're within 5 pounds.
If they actually stage an intervention, you're about done.
I am merely at Stage I of this cycle. Dropping to 170 pounds leaves me with ample love handles, and I won't be posting any beach pictures of myself on my Facebook page. But, a few people have noticed I lost weight.
I've been down another 10 pounds -- to 160. At that weight, people thought maybe I was sick, and a few even asked my wife if I was OK. But I still did not have a "six pack" and had plenty of healthy body fat. I was simply smaller than I used to be. Not even what I would consider "lean." When I think of "lean" I think of a rock climber or gymnast or ultra runner. Those folks are lean. At 160lbs, my 5'11" frame is not even close to lean. Simply healthy.
Is there a tipping point? Of course there is, and my suggestion is to get familiar with your own body and be realistic about how much body fat you can drop. Pinch at your waist. If it's just skin, you're pretty lean. If there's a half inch or more of fat pinched in there, you could still go a little lower. The limits of race weight are far lower than what the modern developed-world adult holds as the "norm" for healthy weight. Only you can decide if you want to go really low.
Now, how to do it...
No matter what you read or hear or think, it always and everywhere comes down to caloric balance. If you take in less than you burn, you will lose body fat. Period. No other rules apply. At all. Ever.
But, what about cutting sugar, or wheat, or eating "paleo"...? Those are strategies to accomplish caloric deficit. The simplest steps are to cut out foods that are calorically dense. And...that means processed foods that contain a lot of added sugar, as a starting point. So, does cutting sugar help lose weight? Yes as an initial step. But it's not because sugar is some special force of the apocalypse...it's because foods with added sugar are engineered to get you to eat a lot of it.
Rather than cover all the detail here, I'll keep it simple. Eat food you have to prepare. Vegetables, lean meats in their natural form, some legumes and grains. If you eat grains, stick to the whole versions that you cook yourself. Nothing wrong with bread -- just get whole grain.
A great resource is the website, books and blogs of James Fell. His main website is www.bodyforwife.com.
I like his stuff because he really gets it, and he gets it right. Funny, irreverent and well-researched. Probably the best popular-media guy active when it comes to diet and exercise. No shortcuts, no bullshit, no marketing lies.
Remember, so long as you stay above the "intervention" level of race weight, losing body fat is the best and most cost-effective way of racing faster. People spend multiple thousands of dollars to lose a pound off their bike (which barely makes any difference) when they won't take an extra 10 minutes a day to eat right and lose 10-15 pounds over the course of a few months. Those 10-15 pounds make a heck of a big difference in your run split -- far more than any expensive bike parts will make on your bike split.
I'll paraphrase Dan Empfield:
When your family and friends start asking if you've lost weight, you're not even getting started.
When they ask if you've been sick, you're within maybe 10 pounds.
If they start whispering to your spouse/partner and asking if you have AIDS or cancer, you're within 5 pounds.
If they actually stage an intervention, you're about done.
I am merely at Stage I of this cycle. Dropping to 170 pounds leaves me with ample love handles, and I won't be posting any beach pictures of myself on my Facebook page. But, a few people have noticed I lost weight.
I've been down another 10 pounds -- to 160. At that weight, people thought maybe I was sick, and a few even asked my wife if I was OK. But I still did not have a "six pack" and had plenty of healthy body fat. I was simply smaller than I used to be. Not even what I would consider "lean." When I think of "lean" I think of a rock climber or gymnast or ultra runner. Those folks are lean. At 160lbs, my 5'11" frame is not even close to lean. Simply healthy.
Is there a tipping point? Of course there is, and my suggestion is to get familiar with your own body and be realistic about how much body fat you can drop. Pinch at your waist. If it's just skin, you're pretty lean. If there's a half inch or more of fat pinched in there, you could still go a little lower. The limits of race weight are far lower than what the modern developed-world adult holds as the "norm" for healthy weight. Only you can decide if you want to go really low.
Now, how to do it...
No matter what you read or hear or think, it always and everywhere comes down to caloric balance. If you take in less than you burn, you will lose body fat. Period. No other rules apply. At all. Ever.
But, what about cutting sugar, or wheat, or eating "paleo"...? Those are strategies to accomplish caloric deficit. The simplest steps are to cut out foods that are calorically dense. And...that means processed foods that contain a lot of added sugar, as a starting point. So, does cutting sugar help lose weight? Yes as an initial step. But it's not because sugar is some special force of the apocalypse...it's because foods with added sugar are engineered to get you to eat a lot of it.
Rather than cover all the detail here, I'll keep it simple. Eat food you have to prepare. Vegetables, lean meats in their natural form, some legumes and grains. If you eat grains, stick to the whole versions that you cook yourself. Nothing wrong with bread -- just get whole grain.
A great resource is the website, books and blogs of James Fell. His main website is www.bodyforwife.com.
I like his stuff because he really gets it, and he gets it right. Funny, irreverent and well-researched. Probably the best popular-media guy active when it comes to diet and exercise. No shortcuts, no bullshit, no marketing lies.
Remember, so long as you stay above the "intervention" level of race weight, losing body fat is the best and most cost-effective way of racing faster. People spend multiple thousands of dollars to lose a pound off their bike (which barely makes any difference) when they won't take an extra 10 minutes a day to eat right and lose 10-15 pounds over the course of a few months. Those 10-15 pounds make a heck of a big difference in your run split -- far more than any expensive bike parts will make on your bike split.
Monday, August 18, 2014
Half Marathon Test
Saturday I ran my first timed event in almost 7 years. The inaugural half marathon in Oakland. Course had slight hills...not much really. Maybe a minute or so added to the time, at most.
Anyway, goal time was 1:53 in order to have some confidence I could run 2:00 off the bike in Tahoe. I've since made an adjustment to that goal time in order to account for altitude. I've run at Tahoe a lot, and I never really "feel" the altitude in terms of shortness of breath or anything. However, at any give perceived effort, I've found that I'm running ~20sec per mile slower than I think I am.
This is consistent with the ~5% adjustments to qualifying times the NCAA uses for distance running events at altitude. The data backing that adjustment was arrived at with some careful work, so it makes sense to expect that 5% slower pace.
So, my goal time is 2:06, provided that I can run an open half marathon in 1:53. Drum roll....
I ran 1:54:30. Missed it by a bit.
But...I did not push the pace at all. Just didn't feel like suffering, so I didn't. I left at least a minute or two out there. My HR stayed in the 142-148 range the whole first half (my "all-day" running HR is 145). I picked up the effort a little bit in the second half into the 155-160 range (I've done half marathons averaging 165).
I honestly feel I could have carried on another hour at that pace.
So, I'm going to call the test a success.
I have a lot of work to do in the next 4 weeks. Athletes doing big volume can start their tapers somewhat early. Since I'm doing barely enough volume to warrant even driving up there, I have to keep my training rolling right up to 5-7 days out.
On another subject, I tried on my Size 4 DeSoto wetsuit yesterday. The one I bought when I weighed 160 pounds. Yes, that is correct. It does not fit.
So I went down to Sports Basement and reserved a rental Blue Seventy for the event.
Getting old and fat suuuuucks.
Thursday, August 14, 2014
Race Weight
When I registered for the Tahoe half, I weighed in around 184 lbs. I'd been as high as 192lbs last December (oof). I felt fat; I looked fat. Wore size 36 pants. Ugh.
With regular exercise and a sharpened focus on eating well, I'm now down to 170lbs. My guess is that I'll be at 167 or so by race day. I'm now wearing all my old size 32 pants. :-)
More importantly, I feel like "me" again.
I've also taken up weight training in the gym. Haven't really done that since college. Wow, what a difference it makes in how I feel. I'm not doing leg work in the gym at this time; after the half is done I'll probably start light squat work. But the upper body lifting really complements all the healthy improvements from running and cycling. I feel like my whole body is working together now, instead of having a scrawny weak torso carried around by nice fit legs.
But the real goal of this gym work is simple and age-old: My sons mocked me for not being able to do more than one pull-up. They can do them till I'm bored of watching. I can do 8 now. Working my way up to 10 and maybe they'll respect their old man.
With regular exercise and a sharpened focus on eating well, I'm now down to 170lbs. My guess is that I'll be at 167 or so by race day. I'm now wearing all my old size 32 pants. :-)
More importantly, I feel like "me" again.
I've also taken up weight training in the gym. Haven't really done that since college. Wow, what a difference it makes in how I feel. I'm not doing leg work in the gym at this time; after the half is done I'll probably start light squat work. But the upper body lifting really complements all the healthy improvements from running and cycling. I feel like my whole body is working together now, instead of having a scrawny weak torso carried around by nice fit legs.
But the real goal of this gym work is simple and age-old: My sons mocked me for not being able to do more than one pull-up. They can do them till I'm bored of watching. I can do 8 now. Working my way up to 10 and maybe they'll respect their old man.
Wednesday, August 13, 2014
5 Weeks Out: Assessment
The training window is rapidly closing. By that I mean training that can actually improve my finish time. Once we're inside about 15-20 days, training shifts from "get better" to "don't eff this up." I'm not there yet, so I can still do workouts that can improve my time. So, what are those workouts?
Swim
I have done a grand total of 6,000 yards of swimming. No, I did not leave a zero off. I don't like swimming, and so I haven't gone very much. That, obviously, has to change and I've got 2-1/2 weeks to change. I will, I SWEAR, go to masters swim twice each in the next two weeks. That will be 5 masters workouts at about 2500y each (I swim in the slowest, easiest lane). Throw in a couple more during the taper weeks and I'll be fine. I'm not trying to break 30 minutes; just have a smooth and easy time of it and get into T1 at around 40 minutes.
But, time is running out and I really need to commit and get to the pool. What type workouts? It doesn't matter -- unless you're gunning for the top of your age group, just show up and do whatever the masters coach tells you to do.
Bike
My power benchmarks are good. My goal was to get 60min power up to 200w, and I'm comfortable in saying I'm at around 225w. I've had some good hard 30-40 minute efforts at that power level in the middle of longer rides. That would put my race goal at 78% of that figure, or 175w. So, I went out last weekend to do a 3hr ride at 175w as a race-rehearsal test.
No friggin way I can do that. I was toast after 2.5 hours. I have not built the stamina to stay "on the curve" and carry my short-term power predictably out to longer durations. So I will bear down and do several 4 hour steady rides over the next three weeks. I have only been riding once a week, and I'll add a mid-week ride as well.
Running
This has worked out the best. I've had several very solid 12-15 mile steady runs, and have gotten in 2-3 other runs almost every week. Once a week, I've worked in a run with 30-40 minutes of threshold pace running.
I do a half marathon this weekend that will be my true test of target race pace.
All in all, the running is great; the bike is OK; my swim fitness doesn't even exist yet.
5 weeks to go. Time to focus up.
Swim
I have done a grand total of 6,000 yards of swimming. No, I did not leave a zero off. I don't like swimming, and so I haven't gone very much. That, obviously, has to change and I've got 2-1/2 weeks to change. I will, I SWEAR, go to masters swim twice each in the next two weeks. That will be 5 masters workouts at about 2500y each (I swim in the slowest, easiest lane). Throw in a couple more during the taper weeks and I'll be fine. I'm not trying to break 30 minutes; just have a smooth and easy time of it and get into T1 at around 40 minutes.
But, time is running out and I really need to commit and get to the pool. What type workouts? It doesn't matter -- unless you're gunning for the top of your age group, just show up and do whatever the masters coach tells you to do.
Bike
My power benchmarks are good. My goal was to get 60min power up to 200w, and I'm comfortable in saying I'm at around 225w. I've had some good hard 30-40 minute efforts at that power level in the middle of longer rides. That would put my race goal at 78% of that figure, or 175w. So, I went out last weekend to do a 3hr ride at 175w as a race-rehearsal test.
No friggin way I can do that. I was toast after 2.5 hours. I have not built the stamina to stay "on the curve" and carry my short-term power predictably out to longer durations. So I will bear down and do several 4 hour steady rides over the next three weeks. I have only been riding once a week, and I'll add a mid-week ride as well.
Running
This has worked out the best. I've had several very solid 12-15 mile steady runs, and have gotten in 2-3 other runs almost every week. Once a week, I've worked in a run with 30-40 minutes of threshold pace running.
I do a half marathon this weekend that will be my true test of target race pace.
All in all, the running is great; the bike is OK; my swim fitness doesn't even exist yet.
5 weeks to go. Time to focus up.
Monday, August 4, 2014
Benchmark Run, Again
Saturday run: My favorite 13.4 mi circuit. Mild amount of hills, a little trails, and a 4 mile stretch home on a paved bike path, very slightly uphill.
Running smooth and steady, staying in the "endurance" HR zones: 9:06 pace.
That is rocking for me. Yes, real runners think that is slow, but it's nearly the best I've ever gotten. This puts me very much on pace to run 9's in the half IM. If I execute right on the bike and swim, I should be able to do it. The altitude at Tahoe is a bit of a wildcard. From what I have read, I should expect a 5% dropoff in pace.
Still...I'm very happy with how the run training has worked out. Still behind on bike and swim. Due to pending family vacation, I'll get no swim or bike time for the next week. But I can still do a solid block of those next week, still 5 weeks out from race day.
I'll run a half marathon in Oakland on the 16th. Goal race time is ~1:53 in order to be on <2 hr pace in a half IM. So, I'll try to click off 8:40 miles and see if I can hold that the whole way.
Running smooth and steady, staying in the "endurance" HR zones: 9:06 pace.
That is rocking for me. Yes, real runners think that is slow, but it's nearly the best I've ever gotten. This puts me very much on pace to run 9's in the half IM. If I execute right on the bike and swim, I should be able to do it. The altitude at Tahoe is a bit of a wildcard. From what I have read, I should expect a 5% dropoff in pace.
Still...I'm very happy with how the run training has worked out. Still behind on bike and swim. Due to pending family vacation, I'll get no swim or bike time for the next week. But I can still do a solid block of those next week, still 5 weeks out from race day.
I'll run a half marathon in Oakland on the 16th. Goal race time is ~1:53 in order to be on <2 hr pace in a half IM. So, I'll try to click off 8:40 miles and see if I can hold that the whole way.
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